From about 11am Sat the 11th of April you will be able to find us on Yeouido by taking Exit #3 of Yeouido Stn (purple line) and walking about 200 meters to the park where you will see a humongous Korean flag that is in front of the National Assembly building. We will be there from 11-12pm before heading for the Incheon ferry terminal and China.

Cherry Blossom Festival
——————————

It turns out that the day we are leaving (Sat 11th of April) is also the start of the Yeouido Cherry Blossom festival, so if you have nothing to do and would like to make a day of going to Seoul why not hire a bike or some inline skates and enjoy the beauty of Spring .

See you all on Saturday.
Jared, Tom, Katie and Dave

Link to Map

The staff were very courteous and polite, and spoke enough English to explain each step in rudimentary detail. They measured, noted, adjusted, and measured some more, even going so far as to minutely move the clips on our bike shoes a few millimetres to the optimum position. The only eyebrow-raising moment was when the chief mechanic sneakily lopped a few inches off my seat post to lower it; this mutilation of my beloved Surly conveniently occurring while I’d nipped out for a can of coke.

I’ve no idea if it’ll all do any difference, but the thought of a little less strain on my joints as I pedal x-hundred thousand times over 16,000km makes the peace of mind factor easily worth 50,000 of my hard-earned Won. All in all, it was a very rewarding morning; much more satisfying than my post-fitting bike ride home to Bundang – headwinds all the way.

That brings us to today. With a bunch of help from our close friend Ken, Tom and I reduced our lives of just about 5 years to a small shipping container.

Strange to think that a place that has been called home can be reduced to so little, and how inconsequential worldly possessions really are.

Now we just need to pack those panniers and get on a the ferry.

Like the festival itself, the level of our contribution was very much in doubt until the last minute. Jared and I spent most of Friday evening finalizing Katie’s snazzy brochure design and finding somewhere to get it printed up, while David went about the process of obtaining a few bilingual banners from his contacts in Ilsan. It all came out all right in the end though, and on Saturday we had a full complement  of three bikes and riders (Katie is currently in the US on vacation and was unable to attend, though she was certainly with us in spirit).

Amidst a sea of folks dressed in varying shades of green, we set up shop next to the tent housing the display for the Seoul Global Help Center, handing out copies of the team brochures and answering queries from intrigued and occasionally baffled members of the general public.  Bikes and banners at the ready, we then followed the parade along its somewhat abbreviated route through the back streets of Hyewha before returning for more Q&A until it was time to head home and escape the cold.

Thanks to the Irish Association of Korea (www.iak.co.kr) for allowing us to participate, to everyone who came out to show their support in near-freezing conditions , and to all the festival-goers who stopped by to check out our static display.

Apologies to the people of New Zealand (not New ZELAND) for the little typo on the brochure. Spell checking at 11pm on a Friday is never going to be 100% perfect. And to the poor bespectacled little girl to whose father David inquired , “Would your SON like to sit on the bike?”

That day has finally arrived !!

On Saturday April the 11th 2009 Dave, Tom, Katie and Jared will start their adventure from Ilsan, the place that they bought their first bikes in Korea, ride to Yeouido near the 63 Building (Korea’s largest skyscraper), pack their gear for the last time into their trusty car (The Packen II) on Korean soil and head for the ferry to Dalian, China.

We invite you to come and say goodbye one last time either in Ilsan, Yeouido, or both. Maps will be provided of the exact starting point in Ilsan, path we will ride and the gathering/leaving point in Yeouido shortly.

Saturday Itinerary

5pm – Leave for Dalian, China by Ferry

Can’t be there on the day? Not in Korea? Show your support below :

Join our Fan Page : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Braking-Boundaries/19898301324

Follow our Trip Blog : http://www.brakingboundaries.org

And most importantly, donate to our chosen cause KIVA and help lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world.

http://www.kiva.org/team/braking_boundaries
http://www.brakingboundaries.org/kiva/

Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world. Kiva partners with existing expert microfinance institutions. In doing so, they gain access to outstanding entrepreneurs from impoverished communities world-wide.

See you Sat the 11th,
The Braking Boundaries Team

Hello? My name is “your name.” I’m an Emergency First Responder. May I help

Last Saturday Dave, Katie, Kath and I attended an Emergency First Responder and First Aid course to better prepare ourselves for the potential injuries that come with 4 cyclists traveling over 16,000 km’s.

Jokes and good times make serious situations much more enjoyable. “Now how do you get these damn gloves on.”

For all those office fans out there. The picture below was taken with episode 13 season 5 in mind. And no we were not taught to harvest the organs.

I also hope we can find a spare scuba fin on our travles so Katie can splint a leg.

In all seriousness though, it’s nice to know that we will be able to look after each other to the best of our abilities and at least have more of an idea what that entails.

Special thanks to the guys at Deep Blue Quest dive shop and our instructor Ryan for his fantastic guidance. http://www.deepbluequest.com

After the team having the chance to meet come cycling legends and listen to them speak about what to do, what not to do, what is cool to see and what isn’t it was decided that we really need to take a good look at routes, including alternates and what our actual goals of the ride are.

After Dan Martin drew a line on a map last weekend and said this would be more interesting we have had some lengthy discussions and the images you see are the result. bviously there is no right or wrong way to get from A to B (Sort of – Iran has been ruled out due to Katies visa) it has been nice to spark the debate (sometimes heated – but we still love each other) of “why not go here instead” and “this is an option if this doesn’t pan out.”

From everything that has been said, we are all aware that you can’t really decide exactly where to go until you are on your bike riding through lands unknown and talking to those you meet. And as much as I personally am an over planner, letting go of the need to know in advance and go with the flow is going to be important and I look forward to learning this skill.

For now though, it’s exciting to draw lines on a map.

It’s breakfast time here in Korea and I plan on eating pizza and drinking coke. All part of my new training regime. Eat whatever I want for the next 85 days.

Dan is back to Korea after completing a 426 day bike ride from South Korea to Cape Town through some of the (in my opinion) most dangerous countries in the world. He is currently getting ready to leave on his next adventure, a world triathlon.

Swim : New York -> France
Cycle : France -> Alaska
Run : Alask -> New York

Luckily for me though Dan just happened to be in Bundang on Wednesday night so I jumped on the oppurtunity to sit down and pick his brain about all the different experiences he had. Dave, upon hearing that he there was a chance to chat to him again made the long trip down from Ilsan

It’s a great feeling to sit down and chat to someone so enthusiastic about the world

But the night did not end there. As Dave was waiting for Dan to return from somewhere a gentleman sat down next to and must have overheard Dave talking about our trip to someone else when the guy (now known as Thorsten) said “I’ve been cycling throughout Asia and the world for the last two and half years.

It turns out that Thorsten is on an extended break here in Korea before heading to China. What are the chances of that!!!!!

I’d have to say that this Wednesday night goes down as one of the most interesting, informative and random nights that I have had in a long time.

We all plan on sitting down with Thorsten in the coming weeks to hear of his stories while on the road through foreign lands and his encounters.

You can follow Dan’s Adventures past and future here.
http://www.koreatocapetown.co.uk
http://www.londontocapetown.co.uk
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php/pages/Daniel-Martin/48521059312 (Facebook Fan Page)

For more information on Thorsten and his adventures check out his website.
http://www.bambi-on-tour.eu

….and don’t forget to become a facebook fan of Braking Boundaries
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Braking-Boundaries/19898301324

I thought it would be worthwhile writing up exactly what I vaccinations have taken in preparation for this trip. While this is my personal list I assume that my fellow team mates also have these vaccinations. I have also listed the prices that I paid here in Korea roughly converted into USD

Vaccination List – What I already had before the trip and therefore didn’t need.

• Tetanus/Diphtheria (lasts 10 years)
• Hepatitis A (supposedly lasts for life)

Was vaccinated for Varicella (chicken pox) and Pertussis (whooping cough) as a kid.

Vaccinations in the last 3 months

• Polio / $25 (this is a booster that lasts 10 years)
• Hepatitis B / $70 – (3 shots over 3 months – Lasts for life)
• Typhoid / $25 – (1 shot that lasts for 3 years)
• MMR / $20 – (1 shot for measles, mumps and rubella that lasts for 10 years)
• Japanese Encephalitis / $25 – (one shot that lasts for life)
• Rabies / $160 – (3 shots over 4 weeks – lasts for 5 years)

(We will also be carrying a supply of Malaria pills that may be needed in a few areas)

After consulting with various physicians about the areas we will be traveling the following vaccinations have not been taken.

• Meningococcal Meningitis
• Yellow Fever
• Cholera + E.Coli

If you are looking for more information about vaccinations while in Korea and their costs visit the International Clinic.

Not many months left until the leaving date now.

Panniers are they are bags that attach to the bike racks with the intent of holding enough equipment for self-sustained tours over days, weeks, or in our case months. The two main brands of panniers are Arkel and Ortlieb.

Finally after months of waiting our panniers arrived helping us get one big step closer to having all the necessary gear for our trip next year.

For our rear panniers we decided to go with a lesser known brand name from Poland called Crosso which had been recommended by Jakub who also set-up and shipped our custom built Surly bikes. We chose this option based on price, quality and importantly waterproofing. Our Crosso panniers were also made to order so we were able to ask for a specific design changes, one being a zip in the top and a small pocket on the inside of the back panniers for stashing cash or valuable documentation. But the biggest design change was the addition of the Ortlieb QL1 hooking system.

The QL1 hooking system allows the bags to be easily taken on and off the bike racks using a quick release system. In theory this should save time and hassle when loading and unloading the bikes. Arkel has a similar system which we have been using throughout the year with our front panniers and have found it very useful.

The only downside to using the QL1 mounting system was that it had to come from New Zealand meaning we had to assemble to the panniers ourselves. This made for an interesting Sunday night. After a few hours of frustration and fiddling around with small screws and parts Tom and I were able to figure out how to put it all together.

Pannier setup and specifations for each bike:

Tom’s Surly
Front : Crosso Expert (capacity 2 x 40 liters)
Rear : Crosso Expert (capacity 2 x 60 liters)

Top Rear : Crosso Expert (capacity 1 x 50 liters)

Jared’s Surly
Front : Arkel XM-28 (capacity 2 x 28 liters)
Rear : Crosso Expert (capacity 2 x 60 liters)
Top Rear : Crosso Expert (capacity 1 x 50 liters)

Katie’s Surly
Front : Arkel XM-28 (capacity 2 x 28 liters)
Rear : Crosso Expert (capacity 2 x 60 liters)
Top Rear : Crosso Expert (capacity 1 x 50 liters)

Dave’s Grasshopper (recumbent)
Front : To be decided
Rear : Arkel RT-60 (capacity 2 x 60 liters)

Our first surprise was learning that the third bike (which we’d neglected to remove from its box on Sunday) was not olive like its siblings but cherry red. A quick size comparison confirmed that this was indeed the smallest frame and therefore Katie’s by default. [Cue envious thoughts from yours truly.]

There’s something to be said for taking pride in your work, and we were certainly proud enough when we finished the first one. Here’s Jared giving it a final check:

Jared was kind enough to photograph the spare parts that were supplied with the bikes for easier recollection and cataloguing at a later time.

Nothing quite says “I enjoy my work” like a half-crazed grin.

Jared’s machine, the largest, sports a 21″ frame and humongous 700mm tires. He may get vertigo up there.

I’m sure the various adjustable parts – seat height, handlebar angle etc -will be tinkered with more than few times before the trip, but for now, we have three fully-functioning bikes. All that’s needed now is panniers and we’re pretty much ready to rock and roll. Scary biscuits, indeed.

The thought of a slow, frostbitten death on the Kazakh Steppes may be the only thing stopping us from going earlier than planned.

Footnote: I took my Surly out for a quick run this afternoon to see if everything was properly affixed. It took about 10 minutes before deciding that on the pedestrian-filled bike paths of Bundang, without a bell or lights, and with darkness approaching, I might as well just run the bike into a wall. A quick visit to the bike store has now made the bike street-legal (if Korea even has legal requirements for bike safety), but methinks I need to be less scared of a few little scratches…tomorrow…or maybe Thursday…

It was the call I’d been waiting for all weekend. After weeks of anticipation and delivery status updates, our 3 brand-new Surlys were finally at Incheon, awaiting collection. They could have been delivered direct to our doors, but we saved over $200 by picking them up ourselves, even after deducting gas and tolls, and it’s not like we had anything better to do on a Sunday.

The trip to the airport was a familiar one and mercifully traffic-free. We soon arrived at the offices of Korean Air Cargo. The building was pretty deserted, minus the clerks themselves, who seemed rather puzzled to see two foreigners at their desks on a quiet Sunday afternoon.

Thus ensued two and a half hours of shuttling back and forth between shipping clerks, officials, and a kindly old customs offer who invited us to join his photography club and admonished us for not going to church often enough.

Here they come!

If you look closely you can see the (well-earned) smugness radiating from Jared’s face.

In our haste and excitement to see what the roughly assembled bits would look like, we put the front wheel on, forgetting that we’d have to take it off again to get the bike on the roof rack. Schoolboy error, as my mate English Thomas would say. Dumbassed-ness aside, it wasn’t long before there were two bikes on the rack; a third, still boxed, on the back seat; and two grinning cyclists-in-waiting in the front.

Time to return to sunny Bundang…

HP Velotechnik Specific Parts:
Grasshopper Frameset with bodyLink seat
Underseat Steering with Wide bars for Ergomesh
DT Swiss XM180 Rear Shock
Saso Carbon AC Suspension fork

Front Wheel
SON20 Disk Hub, silver, 32h
Velocity Aeroheat Rim, 32h
DT Swiss Champion spokes, laced 1x, brass nipples

Rear Wheel
Rohloff Speedhub, Silver, External Gear Box, OEM2 plate, grip shifter
Rohloff Speedbone (for use with disk brakes and OEM2 mounting plate)
Rohloff Chain Tensioner
Velocity Aeroheat Rim, 32h
DT Swiss Champion spokes, laced 1x, brass nipples

Drivetrain
Rotor Cranks, Steel version, length TBD, 39/53t chainrings
Shimano 105 5600 Front Derailleur, clamp on
SRAM PC850 Chain x3

Brakes
Avid BB7 mechanical disk brakes, front and rear
Avid SD7 Brake levers
Rohloff Specific Disk Brake Rotor
Lights – B&M D Lumotec Topal Oval Senso Plus
B&M DToplight XS Plus mounted on rack

Accessories
ErgoMesh Seat
Airflow Cushion
Grasshopper Kickstand
Fastback Double Century Pack
Arkel Rt-60 Pannier

The bikes left New Zealand today bound for us here in South Korea and should arrive in about a weeks time.

Stay tuned…….